Date of Publication

2024

Project Team

Dr. Teresa Cahill-Griffin, DNP, RNC-OB, Dr. Elsa Ingpen, DNP, FNP-C

Abstract

Purpose: Preventative health education for children is critical for promoting lifelong health and reducing both illness burden and medical care costs. Rural students face barriers to healthcare including ability to pay, transportation, and workforce shortages. School-based health clinics (SBHCs) have increased rural healthcare access by providing students access to medical care while at school. While SBHCs are utilized primarily for acute concerns, the setting has the potential to be further utilized for preventative health education. This project sought to implement a health promotion toolkit in a rural Vermont SBHC and to assess both provider satisfaction and change in student perceived knowledge.

Methods: A health promotion toolkit was introduced to providers at a rural SBHC. Providers identified students 12 years of age and older who would benefit from teaching. Providers completed a pre-visit questionnaire with students before completing targeted health teaching. A post-visit questionnaire was completed to assess retained knowledge. Weekly questionnaires were completed by SBHC providers to assess their satisfaction.

Results: A health promotion toolkit was effectively implemented at a rural SBHC. Positive feedback was received from SBHC providers (n=3) and feedback to include students 8 years of age and older was used to drive an additional PDSA cycle. Student (n=13) perceived knowledge increased after the teaching.

Conclusion: The Nemours toolkit was well-liked by providers and proved to be effective at increasing student knowledge at this particular SBHC. Further utilization of health promotion toolkits and research in rural SBHCs is needed to demonstrate increased health education access in this population.

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Available for download on Thursday, April 16, 2026

Included in

Nursing Commons

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